Author Archives: lindseyulasz

“You hit a goal, you achieve a goal. You keep a resolution”.                                ~ Gretchen Rubin

I decided to ask some people in my network if they had any New Years Career Resolutions. I got off to a great start. One woman admitted that she would love to see her coworkers deal with their customers in a more empathetic and positive way, especially since the company she works for is purely customer services orientated. I found her answer to be genuinely concerned for how some of her coworkers were dealing with customers and in turn making her work environment not a very fun one.

A couple of people admitted that they would like to look for a new or more challenging role in 2012. Others felt that they had hit the well-known ceiling and were at a crossroads with whether or not they should stay or move on from their current companies.  Two people said that they would like to further their education and be more challenged in their work. Then I got an answer that made me realize this whole “New Years Resolution” thing is a bit silly! My close friend Paul said, “New years resolutions are easy enough to make, but it is the actual implementation that differentiates the highly motivated from the somewhat motivated.” This comment jolted me a bit and made me question why do we feel we need to make promises to ourselves just because it’s a new year? I am sure most people can admit they never follow through with these promises, and most of them probably quickly conjure up some cliché answer when asked. Do you ever hear anyone ask,  “Hey, what’s your resolution for April?” Of course you don’t. People have this tendency to think: New Year, new start. What I am asking here is why?

Be the highly motivated and make your goals year round. Write out your goals and stick it on your wall or in your bedside table and look at it nightly. Remind yourself of where you want to be and want you want to achieve and start taking the right steps. Don’t give some fluffy answer because everyone and their dog are asking you “What’s your New Years resolution?” How about next time you’re asked say, “To make a new goal for every month and actually achieve it.” Let’s get serious here and make our own successes with actual steps to get us there.

For example,  to the woman who wants to see more positivity and empathy coming from some of her coworkers, I propose she initiates the change by being extra positive herself and setting a clear example for the rest of her team. Exude the fantastic customer service energy and hope some jump on the train. Or become a good listener to those who are negative and help them clarify their issues and perhaps provide good insight of how she handles difficult customers while remaining empathetic and helpful. These would be great steps to implement – and it means actually following through with your goal.

I completely appreciate my peers’ answers and honestly believe every single one of them will achieve their career goals. It just got me thinking about how many things I would like to achieve for 2012 and if I will actually do it.  Being honest with myself I can say that previous “resolutions” were not fulfilled and I am tired of it! I am now going to make goals for myself every time I think of something I want, and that’s not just for my career, it’s for my health, personal life, and anything else I want. And I will tenaciously take the needed steps. Saying it is easy… it’s the doing that’s hard.